Riku's heart
by ninjafairygirl
Summary: One shot! On which Riku and Sora have a serious discussion. Written for Rikunami day.


A/N: this was inspired by a tumblr post I found (can't remember who wrote it, sorry!) that said something along the lines of Sora referred to Riku as someone special to Namine because at some point in the game, Riku probably said how much he missed her.

"Then may your heart be your guiding key."

Master Yen Sid sent them off with the usual phrase, and the small group of warriors drew into groups for a little bit of small talk before heading off to their homes for the night. This could be the last they'd ever see of them, the keyblade war just on the horizon. So much had happened, it was hard to believe the day of fate was finally nigh upon them.

"Sora, can I talk to you a minute?" Riku shot Kairi a look. "In private?"

"Sure thing!"

Sora and Riku exited the large gathering room with Yen Sid's desk and entered into the small room beside where the good fairies had gifted Sora his new clothes when the mess with the nobodies started. The room was dark and silent, despite all the chatter just next door.

"What's going on, Riku?" Sora asked.

Riku took a moment to collect his thoughts. "You all set for tomorrow?"

"Yeah. There's no way we're going to let Xehanort win. And then we'll get all of our friends back." Sora leaned into his usual stance. "Are you nervous?"

"No, I know that we'll pull through, we always do." Riku looked at his hand.

"But…?" Sora tried to catch Riku's eye.

"Have you ever missed someone so much that your heart just...hurts?" Riku looked at Sora.

"Your heart...hurts? Is the darkness getting to you? You and the king spent a lot of time in the dark realm, do you think that could be it?" Sora recalled.

"No, it's nothing like that, I just haven't really ever felt this way, except for when Ansem took over and I thought I had lost you and Kai." Riku tried to explain.

Sora could tell he was struggling. It was odd. Usually Riku always knew just what to say. He had been thoughtful and confident for as long as Sora could remember. Sora had been occasionally jealous because Riku seemed like he always had it together. When did he get nervous?

"Who are you missing?" Sora questioned sincerely.

Riku blushed and scratched the back of his head. He mumbled something, but Sora couldn't quite make it out. A smirk filled his face, as he poked his friend's arm.

"Is it a girl?" Sora teased.

Riku's lack of an answer pressed Sora to continue.

"Well what do we have here. The too-cool Riku has a crush on someone." Sora gasped. "Is it Selphie? I know she had a crush on you just before we left."

"No, it's not Selphie. And besides, she had a crush on everyone at some point or another. She even had a crush on you, Sora."

"Really? When?" Sora looked confused.

"It was for a couple of weeks in 6th grade. Kairi said she moved on to some upperclassmen cowboy though, so don't get any ideas." Riku teased back.

"You know I wouldn't!" Sora was flabbergasted.

"Relax, I'm kidding. I know you and Kai were meant for each other." Riku folded his arms.

"We...were?" Sora perked up.

"You mean you don't know?" Riku inquired.

"Well, I know how I feel about Kairi, but it seems like we haven't even had a day together for a long time." Sora explained.

"Trust me, she is head over heels for you." Riku nodded. He then sarcastically added, "Not sure why though."

"And how do you know?" Sora huffed.

"Easy. I know the both of you." Riku laughed. "Just like I knew you'd end up asleep somehow."

"Oh yeah, now I remember. I didn't actually recall much of it until Roxas finally merged with me. But I still don't really know everything that happened." Sora admitted.

"It's a long story." Riku noted.

"Short version?" Sora suggested.

Riku took a moment to arrange his thoughts. "Namine was forced to make you forget Kai and place herself where Kai should have been. After your adventures in the castle, you chose to forget the whole thing in order to get your old memories back." Riku recalled. "Then Nam and I spent the next year trying to get everything back the way it was with lots of interference from the organization."

"Yeah. That much I remember, but I can't even imagine a world where I couldn't remember Kairi." Sora hummed. "And you and Namine worked together to help me get my memories back?"

Riku smiled tenderly. "Yeah."

"Oooh, I get it now! You miss Namine!" Sora smiled.

"More than anything." Riku breathed.

The cheeky grin on Sora's face disappeared. With just one sentence, he understood the weight of his friend's words. This wasn't some minor crush or even just friendship. This was as much of true love as Sora could figure.

Sora was glad. When he realized his feelings for Kairi and learned she felt a similar way, Sora had worried that they would leave their friend out. They had always been together, with Tidus, Selphie and Wakka intermittently added in. He didn't want to shut Riku out just to spend time with Kairi. They would get Namine back, Sora resolved.

"Wait, you guys were together a whole year?" Sora realized.

"Yeah. Nam had some trouble fixing the memories because of Roxas, but that was really the only thing that slowed her down." Riku confided. "I spent as much time as I could with her, but I had to be gone quite a bit whenever DiZ needed something to move your progression forward."

"Wow, I had no idea." Sora responded.

"She was just this amazing person. She is kind and resourceful. We got to the point where we could read each other perfectly. I miss seeing that smile of hers. It didn't happen very often, but…" Riku tapered off.

"I understand. That's how I feel about Kairi." Sora smiled.

"Yeah, I know." Riku folded his arms.

"When did you know that you liked her?" Sora asked.

"I think it was shortly after DiZ ordered me to dispose of her. She promised we'd see each other again. She never called me Ansem after my face changed, and she was the one person who showed me what I needed to do." Riku surmised.

"Ienzo is working on the replicas, so I have no doubt we'll see her soon." Sora supposed

"I hope so. Thanks for listening." Riku placed a hand in Sora's shoulder.

"Anytime. It'll all be over tomorrow." Sora smiled.

* * *

Just as Sora said, it would all be over soon. The war had finished, Kingdom Hearts was put away and Xehanort was finally- finally gone. But So was Sora. And so was Kairi. Although Riku was confident that his friends would be home soon, he couldn't help but feel sad. They were gone and there was nothing he could do to help.

They had always been together. But it seemed that fate had other plans.

"I may not be able to help Sora and Kairi," Riku looked down at the replica that was laying in the dirt. "But I can help you."

Kneeling down, Riku gently placed the replica's head in his lap and brushed the dust off its face. It was fitting that the replica was wearing the cloak of the organization; it was something that protected the wearer from the darkest of places. Riku promised Namine- no, he promised both of them- that they'd never have to walk in the darkness alone again.

It was time to go. The sooner Riku could get this replica to Radiant Garden, the sooner he'd be able to bring Namine home. It had weighed only a few pounds, Riku came to find out as he picked up the replica bridal style. Just as he was about to turn to leave, he took one last look at where the body had lain.

There was something that had surprised him. A little red flower was poking out of the ground. It was a little squished, of course, but it was stretching toward the sun, nonetheless. It had a black center and lots of green leaves. He knew he'd seen flowers like it along roads as weeds. What were they called?

He had an idea. Carefully placing the replica down, he pulled out a glass container that held a potion. He drank it down and then filled up part of the jar with dirt. With as much care as he could manage without a tool, he dug up the flower and placed it in the container.

"What a pretty poppy, Riku." Mickey walked closer.

"A poppy?" Riku turned.

"Yup. Minnie has a few in her garden. We send them to people whenever there's a funeral." Mickey admitted. "But you know, they can also symbolize a new life after loss. Like a resurrection of hope."

"I see." Riku looked at the flower. "Mickey, can you take this to Radiant Garden for me? I want to keep it growing, just for a little while. Then we can transplant it into the queen's garden, if you don't mind."

"I think that's a great idea. Of this poppy can survive the war, then so can we." Mickey smiled and took the flower. "Where did you find it?"

"They were protecting it." Riku looked down at the replica. "Namine and the other me."

Riku gingerly picked the replica back up and began walking towards the ship. Mickey was right. Hope could being the ones he loved home. Not just Sora and Kairi, but Namine, too. They'd never have to be alone again


End file.
